Itadakimasu (いただきます) is what Japanese people say right before they eat — a short phrase of gratitude that translates literally as "I humbly receive." It's said over almost every meal, at home and out, and it thanks everyone and everything that brought the food to the table.
There's no perfect English match. It's part grace, part "thanks for the meal," part quiet acknowledgment — and completely automatic for anyone who grew up with it.
What itadakimasu really means
The word comes from itadaku (いただく), a humble verb meaning "to receive." Say it before a meal and you are receiving that food gratefully — but the thanks reaches wider than the cook. The humility is deliberate: itadaku is the verb for receiving something from someone of higher standing, so the phrase quietly sets the eater below the meal, grateful rather than entitled.
It goes to the person who prepared the meal, to the farmers and fishers behind the ingredients, and, in an older Buddhist-rooted sense, to the plants and animals that gave their lives for it. That's why it's often explained as "thank you for the life I receive."
How and when to say it
Say it right before your first bite. Many people press their hands together and give a small nod; plenty of others just say the word. Both are normal — the gesture is personal, not a rule. Japanese children learn it early — whole classrooms say itadakimasu together before school lunch, hands pressed flat — which is why the habit runs so deep into adulthood.
Eating alone, people still murmur it under their breath out of pure habit. It's gratitude more than religion, and no one is checking your form.
いただきます
itadakimasu
Thank you for this meal (before eating)
ごちそうさまでした
gochisosama deshita
Thank you, that was a feast (after eating)
The bookend: gochisosama
Every itadakimasu has a closing partner: gochisosama deshita (ごちそうさまでした), said when you finish. It means something like "it was a feast." In casual settings you'll also hear it trimmed to just gochisosama, without deshita — same meaning, lighter register.
It carries a lovely backstory, too. Gochiso (ご馳走) means a feast or fine meal, and at its heart the word evokes "running about" — the dashing around it once took to gather and prepare a guest's food. Say gochisosama to the staff on your way out of a small restaurant and you've paid the real compliment — worth more than a tip, which Japan doesn't expect anyway.
Should visitors say it?
You don't have to say either word, but visitors who do are met with warmth. A quiet itadakimasu (いただきます) before you eat and a gochisosama (ごちそうさま) as you leave signal that you understand the ritual — small courtesies that locals genuinely notice and appreciate.
Neither phrase changes form, so they're among the easiest things to get right in Japanese. There's no wrong volume, either — a barely audible itadakimasu to yourself counts just as much as a whole table saying it in chorus. Say them softly and sincerely and you'll fit in anywhere, from a ramen counter to a home-cooked dinner.
Keep learning Japanese
Mealtimes are one of the easiest places to sound natural in Japanese, because the words never change. Learn the phrases that go around them — ordering, complimenting the chef, asking for the check — in our free Japanese food and dining phrases, and see the full ritual in our guide to ordering food, with audio and speaking practice in the Pretalk app.
